Lab technician charged in slaying of Yale student

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — As police charged a Yale animal lab technician with murdering a graduate student who worked in his building, a portrait began to emerge Thursday of an unpleasant stickler for the rules who often clashed with researchers and considered the mice cages his personal fiefdom.

Police charged 24-year-old Raymond Clark III with murder, arresting him at a motel a day after taking hair, fingernail and saliva samples to compare with evidence from the grisly crime scene at Yale's medical school.

Bond was set at $3 million for Clark, who kept his head down and said "Yes, your honor," when asked whether he understood his rights.

The muscular former high school baseball and football player is charged in the death of 24-year-old Annie Le, a pharmacology doctoral student at Yale who vanished Sept. 8. Her body was discovered five days later stuffed into a utility compartment behind a wall in the basement of the research building where she and Clark worked.

Authorities offered no details about the crime Thursday. They would not discuss a motive, largely because Clark will not talk to police, and would not disclose the DNA test results or how they connected Clark to the slaying.

The Rev. Dennis Smith, a Le family spokesman, said he was not authorized to comment on the arrest. Smith said he did not know whether Le had ever complained about Clark.

Clark appeared in court with two public defenders who were new to the case. A private-practice attorney who had represented him during the investigation did not attend the hearing and said Thursday he no longer represents Clark. The attorney declined to give a reason.

Public defender Joseph Lopez said he was still reviewing the case and declined to comment.

Co-workers told police that Clark was a "control freak" who viewed the laboratory and its mice as his territory, according to a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing and many details remain sealed.

The official said police are looking into whether Clark's attitude led to a deadly workplace confrontation with Le, who was just 4-foot-11 and 90 pounds. But investigators say that's just a theory at this point.

The investigator also said authorities do not necessarily need to prove a motive because they have an abundance of strong forensic evidence.

Two men who said they're friends of Clark defended him Thursday night on CNN, saying he is outgoing and happy and that they're shocked by the charges.